A Meeting of Minds
by FantasticFicLad
Summary: When two of Young Justice's deadliest enemies meet for the first time, will they kill each other or form a deadly alliance? Takes place after YJ 5 and contains some elements from TT the Cartoon


Author's notes: This fic is a prequel to a as-yet unwritten DC fic I have planned. It combines some elements from both Young Justice and the TV Teen Titans. Slashy overtones contained within.

A Meeting of Minds

by Milleniumrex

Harm was cold.

That in and of itself was odd, because Harm shouldn't have been much of anything. The last thing he remembered was his father pointing a gun at his head, the end result of the reign of terror his parents had lived under ever since his powers had emerged. He couldn't blame dear old dad, really. He was just surprised the old man had the stones to do it. But none of those things explained why he had survived, and it certainly didn't explain how he came to find himself in a dark room, lying on a cold metal bed. The dark-haired young supervillain looked down at his chest. No wound. Feeling his head, he found the same. Very odd, he thought. He would have to find out how this had happened. Then he would kill something, just to clear his head. Throwing off the sheet he had been lying under, he noticed for the first time that he was completely naked.

"Damn." He thought to himself. "Whoever saved my life must be a bit of a perv."

He tried to head for the door when he suddenly heard a voice behind him.

"And where do you think you're going? I was hoping you could stay a while. We have a lot to discuss."

The voice dripped of honey and battery acid, and simultaneously made Harm horny and nauseous. He whirled around to see a masked man, dressed in orange and black, calmly sitting in the back of the room staring at him.

Harm frantically searched for his throwing blades, only to remember he had been stripped of all his weapons. And his pants.

"Oh, you didn't think I would actually leave you the means to attack me, did you?" the masked man sneered. "That would be rather sloppy planning on my part. Have a seat. Relax. You're among friends now. Friends who understand what you're trying to do."

"Who the hell are you?" Harm growled, looking more and more like a caged animal every minute.

"My real name isn't given out very easily, boy. But you can call me what my allies do. The name is Slade."

"Okay, Slade, what the hell do you want with me?"

"I'd show a little more gratitude, Billy." Harm shuddered at the sound of his name as Slade continued talking. "You were all but dead when my agents retrieved you. Another minute, and even the nanobots I injected into your bloodstream wouldn't have been able to save you."

Harm sneered. He wasn't anywhere near ready to trust the mystery man yet, even if he had saved his life. "So what the hell do you want from me? Because killing you with my bare hands and taking whatever shit you've got in that costume of yours is still looking like a pretty good option to me!"

"I want what you want, Billy. Revenge. Tell me, how did it feel? To be beaten by the amateur hero Robin, a powerless whelp with only his training to rely on? It must have stung. Believe me, I know that sting all too well. I've been watching this Robin for a while. There have been more than one of them. The first had a chance to serve by my side, as my apprentice. He rejected me, and beat me. His first successor wasn't worthy, but this one is. He's driven, talented. He may one day surpass even his mentor. With the proper guidance, that is. But he's been poisoned against my cause, and to win him over, he will first have to be broken."

"So you've got a little man-crush. Me, I just want to string the twerp up and skip rope with his entrails."

Smirking at the cleverness of his remark, Harm was surprised to be backhanded by Slade. The blow sent him reeling to the floor, blood dripping from his mouth. With an animal roar, he leapt at Slade, his metal-tipped fingernails ready to slice. Slade, seeing him coming, simply sidestepped him and grabbed the teenage boy by the neck, pinning him to the ground.

"I could kill you, child. I could have killed you more than a hundred times in this conversation. But I didn't. Because no matter how much you try my patience, I think you could be of use to me. Why, with the right guidance, I see the promise for you to one day become as skilled as me."

"So...what?" Harm choked out "You want to train me or something?"

"Or something. I'll ask loyal servitude of you. But as my right hand warrior, you will recieve certain...benefits". Even though Slade's mask was covering his face, Harm could tell that the older man was grinning. For a moment, he thought he could feel Slade's other hand creeping up his thigh, but a second later he was hoisted up on his feet.

"So, do we have a deal, boy?"

"Yeah, sure. Not like I've got any better options, is it?"

"Exactly. But believe me when I tell you that if you serve me faithfully, you'll be rewarded well. A storm is coming. A new metahuman is about to emerge from a dark place. There will be a war for her loyalty. And if we can win her over to our cause, every hero in this world will worship before us."

"How do you know all this?"

"Let's just say I have a lot of powerful connections. Now rest up. After the nanobots have finished recharging your energy, I'll want to see exactly what you're capable of. I think an old fashioned sparring match should answer that question."

"Yeah, whatever. I've been meaning to kick the shit out of something for a while. Hey...you going to give me my clothes back?"

"Perhaps if you're good. Now rest up. You'll need it."

As Harm lay back on the hard metal bed, he thought to himself just how screwed up the situation had found himself in was. But it was still better than being dead, and once he was back at full strength, he would teach the creepy old man who the top dog was around here. As he slipped into unconsciousness, his dreams were filled with dead Robins. His time would come soon. All the heroes would pay for humiliating him one day...


End file.
